Rosa Among Thorns
by Otaku-chama
Summary: When spoiled and pampered Rosa of the Mezzanotte Family gets kidnapped by the enemy Vongola's assassination squad, she finds herself butting heads with the equally bratty prince Bel. Can the two find a way to work together when the Vongola are endangered?
1. Chapter 1

*** Rosa Among Thorns ***

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**Disclaimer:** I do not own KHR or the original story by Amano Akira, but I own this storyline, the OCs, and anything that is said here. Peace (/o_o)/

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**- Chapter 1 –**

**The Worst Marriage**

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_**Marriage is like life; it is a field of battle, not a field of roses.**_

_**-Robert Louis Stevenson**_

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"Figlia."

At the sound of the man's deep voice, calling her 'daughter', Rosa turned to him. "Padre," she acknowledged her father haughtily.

The man nodded rather emotionlessly. "Are you prepared to be wed?"

Rosa resisted rolling her eyes and held out her slender arms, to show him more of her underskirt and laced-up corset. "Yes, Padre, I am prepared." She bit her tongue, resisting the urge to tell this man that she did not want to marry. Not when she was only nineteen.

"Good," Padre said. Rosa took a quick look at this man, her father. His beard and hair were streaked with white and grey, although it was once a honey-blonde, just like Rosa's long locks. He was tall, stood straight, shoulders firm and broad. Despite being well onto becoming fifty years old (a rather old age for a man of his profession), he still looked in his prime. Strong. Healthy. Dangerous.

No, he wouldn't stop this marriage, even if Rosa begged and pleaded, something she would never do. In all her nineteen years of life, this man she called Padre, Italian for 'father', never once showed any sign that he loved his daughter.

"You know the importance of this, don't you, Figlia?" Padre said roughly, his piercing eyes gazing at Rosa in a way that made her uncomfortable, as though he was trying to get into her head. "If you marry this man, they will merge with us, and the Mezzanotte Family will be able to expand into Germany and gain more power."

"Yes, Padre, I understand," Rosa managed to say, trying to stop her grimace – or at least the irritated twitch in her left eye. Padre only saw her as a way of getting more power – marrying her off to a man that would guarantee the Italian mafia family she was born into would be able to encroach upon another country.

Today, she was to be married to Tobias Diederich, son of the current leader of the Wolke Family from Germany.

She hated him.

She hated his pasty skin, his dark red hair – the colour of dried blood, she often thought in disgust – that was slick with overused gel. The cruel gleam in his dark eyes.

She hated how he wore fancy Italian or German suits every time she saw him, and that he carried a Walther PPS semi-automatic pistol in a holster on his side, just because he could.

She hated how he walked with a swagger, how he was over-the-top loud and brash and crude, how he was so arrogant and overconfident of himself, how he acted like he was the leader of the Wolke Family even though he hadn't inherited it yet.

She also hated the way he looked at her. Leering, suggestive words, 'accidentally' brushing his hand across her leg, or her back. The way he acted as if he already owned her.

She did not want to marry this man. She wanted to take that Walther PPS semi-automatic and shoot his brains out. It didn't matter that despite being a Mafioso's daughter she's never seen blood before. It didn't matter that she's never even considered going near a weapon – if she could kill, she would kill this man.

Even worse, was that she would be expected by Padre, by Olimpia, by Saul, by everyone of the Mezzanotte Family, to give birth to a child. With Tobias.

That just couldn't get any worse.

And, of course, she must give birth to a son – and as soon as possible, in order for him to be properly raised and trained to become the Mezzanotte Family's next leader before Padre gets too old. Of course they skipped Rosa. A woman could _never_ become a mafia leader, heavens no.

"Sexist, misogynist bastards." Rosa hissed under her breath once she was certain Padre left.

The maidservants came in afterwards, all bowing and silent and refusing to meet Rosa's eyes. They murmered requests for Rosa to raise her arms up, or to put this on, or to turn that way, and so on.

Rosa closed her eyes and let the servants dress her in her wedding gown. She was the Contessa Rosa of the Mezzanotte Family. She's never done a thing for herself in her life.

Once the dress was in place, the maidservants all bowed and backed out, as mutely as possible. Rosa didn't even spare them a glance – after nineteen years of this kind of life, she was used to it, and it hardly bothered her at all.

Rosa stared at herself in the large, gold-framed mirror. She looked beautiful in that dress, she knew. With her delicate, porcelain skin; her long honey-golden hair, her delicate fingers and limbs that suggested she never once did a thing for herself on her own; she was beautiful. The snow-white dress that clung to her skin in some places and flowed freely in others just accentuated that beauty.

But all her looks were going to waste. She would be married to a man – not even, a _boy_, she thought savagely – that she not only didn't love, but she abhorred with every pore of her being.

The door knocked sharply, opening before Rosa could even say "Come in".

Olimpia and Saul walked into the room.

Rosa felt an all-too-familiar surge of detestation when she saw Olimpia. Only seven years older than herself, Olimpia Colombo was Padre's second wife.

The first was obviously Rosa's own mother, Andromeda. A name fit for her mother, who from what Rosa was told was a real beauty, an angel in human form. That must have been the reason why Padre married her.

Andromeda was the only reason why Rosa put up with her father's ways. When she looked into his merciless eyes, she tried to see what Andromeda saw, she tried to find what her own mother saw and felt when she looked at Padre. Surely, Andromeda must have loved this cruel and heartless mafia leader enough to put her life in danger and marry him, even produce a child with him?

Or there was the other reason, that Padre simply forced or threatened her to be his wife … that made Rosa shudder at the thought, made her feel like throwing up.

Apparently, when Rosa was born, Padre was furious that Andromeda did not give birth to a son. He had originally ordered his subordinates to 'dispose' of the baby – in other words, to kill Rosa – but Andromeda put her foot down. Despite being weak and dying from the painful labour, Andromeda absolutely refused to let him kill her baby.

After she had Padre sworn by his honour that he would not harm their child, she died. Back then, many women died from labour. They didn't have the medicine that we have these days.

When Rosa turned eight years old, Padre remarried to Olimpia Colombo. Rosa was told to call her Madre, or 'mother'.

That was the one order Padre had given her that Rosa ever refused.

Olimpia wasn't her mother. Olimpia was beautiful, yes, but Rosa could never see her being as beautiful as Andromeda, despite the fact Rosa has never seen her mother, since Padre had insisted all photos of the goddess-like woman be burned and destroyed (his only bout of anger that he's ever shown).

But Olimpia – she was vain, conceited, easily jealous of anybody who took Padre's attention away from her. She disliked Rosa, whom she believed was nothing but a spoiled, pampered princess, a little troublemaker. Rosa hated Olimpia, for waltzing around the Mezzanotte Headquarters pretending to be the perfect wife, the perfect mother, the perfect woman.

As a result, Rosa called her Madre-Falso, or 'Fake Mother'.

That just made Olimpia hate her even more, something Rosa took sadistic glee in.

"Figlia, are you ready yet?" Olimpia asked in her haughty, slightly nasally tone.

Rosa glared at her. "Yes, _Madre-Falso_." The older woman twitched irritably. Rosa hated it when Olimpia called her 'Figlia'. It was ridiculous to even consider them as mother and daughter, when Rosa was nineteen and Olimpia was twenty-six.

Saul, as if sensing the tension in the air, quickly said, "Alright, Signora, you are here to put the veil on the Contessa, right?"

Olimpia nodded tersely, breaking the tension. Rosa shot a grateful glance at Saul's way. She was not in the mood to deal with a screaming match with Olimpia, not on the worst day of her life.

Saul nodded back and gave her a secret smile. Out of all of Padre's Ring Guardians, Saul – the Rain Guardian – was Rosa's absolute favorite. Not only was he young and handsome (only twenty-three or so, with chestnut-brown hair and warm brown eyes, and a nice smile), he was also kind and treated Rosa differently from the others. He seemed to know that she was lonely, and as such spent much of his time with her.

Rosa knew Saul liked her – maybe a bit more than a friend – and she thought of Saul as her only companion in the cruel mafia world, where feelings don't matter and bonds make a person weak. Saul was someone she could confide in, someone she trusted.

She often thought that if she had to marry someone, she would have liked to marry someone like Saul.

Olimpia, with uncharacteristic motherliness, fussed over the veil until it hung just right over Rosa's face, hiding her long-lashed blue eyes, cherub-like nose, and pouty pink lips behind the translucent white fabric.

"Walk straight, don't lean this way and that," Olimpia ordered, fidgeting with the hem of her own beautiful dress. "Do not trip, or stumble. You can walk in heels, can't you?"

"Yes, I can," Rosa said, irritated. She had been practicing for almost six weeks, and felt stable enough to walk across a flat surface without twisting her ankle.

"Don't get cold feet," Saul joked, winking at her. But behind the cheerful façade, Rosa knew that he was just as angry as she was – he, too, detested Tobias.

When Olimpia left the room, Saul and Rosa were alone. Saul tilted his head, smiling wildly.

"Well? Give ol' Saulie a hug."

Rosa rushed into his warm embrace, feeling safe in his arms as always.

"You don't have to do this, Contessa," Saul whispered, being careful not to ruin her veil or dress.

"I have to, Saul," Rosa replied, her voice muffled as she buried herself into his chest. "I must, for the Family."

"We could go to Signore and beg him to reconsider this marriage," Saul said, sounding rushed and almost desperate. "I'm sure he would listen –,"

"He wouldn't, Saul, you know that." Rosa said. "Padre doesn't care about how I feel, he only cares about expanding the Family. He wants to take over the Vongola one day, you know that."

Saul gave a soft, disbelieving snort. "The Vongola? The enemy family? Don't tell me Signore wants to destroy them. We'd get eaten alive."

Rosa couldn't help but smirk. Indeed, Padre spent many long hours silently stewing in frustration about the Vongola Family, a nine-generation old mafia family that was the most powerful in the world. They showed no signs of slowing down, and rumours had it that the infamous Arcobaleno assassin, Reborn, was in Japan training the next generation Vongola boss.

Lately, the Vongola seemed to be butting heads with the Mezzanotte. It's gone so far that Padre has suggested a full-scale mafia war one each other. The Vongola Nono hasn't agreed to it officially, but he hasn't said no either.

It was all a matter of who would strike first, who would initiate the attack that would bring the two strongest families to battle. That much, Rosa knew for certain.

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Padre was waiting for Rosa, to walk her down the aisle. Rosa took a deep breath as her stomach lurched. For some reason, all six weeks of practicing walking in high heels seemed to go to waste. Rosa's ankles wobbled dangerously as she held a tight grip on Padre's arm.

The orchestra started, and Padre and Rosa slowly walked down the aisle. Rosa, feeling safe behind her veil, swept her eyes across the room. The Guardians were seated in the front, along with a bored-looking Olimpia and a few important officials and attendants.

The second row was the Wolke Family's Guardians and attendants. The only Wolke Mafioso that were seated in the front row was the head of the family, Herr Diederich, and his wife. The rest of the rows were filled with all sorts of unimportant Mafioso Rosa had never bothered to recognize.

Rosa saw Saul, looking at her with a mixture of horror and desperation on his face. Rosa suddenly had the urge to cry, a feeling she hasn't felt for almost eight years. She wanted so badly to find a way to tell him it would be okay, but she couldn't. Saul couldn't even see her face through the veil.

And then, waiting for her at the altar, was the man she was going to marry … Tobias Diederich.

Her stomach convulsed horribly, and Rosa almost gagged. He was wearing a formal version of the suits he usually wore, a blood-red rose tucked into the breast pocket. He had gelled his hair – as usual – slicked back. And – this was where Rosa felt even more hopeless and furious at her predicament – he still had his gun.

Padre released her and Rosa made her way to the aisle alone, as Padre took his seat next to Olimpia. Suddenly, Rosa felt like a little girl, lost and scared and confused. Even though she's never truly considered that man her father, she suddenly yearned for his warmth, the strength in which he held her, the sturdiness when she was next to him.

She felt unbalanced, scared, and desperate. When she threw the veil back over her head, she took a quick glance at the guests once more. None of them looked sympathetic towards her predicament. Half of them didn't even look like they cared.

"We are gathered here today to honor the marriage between Contessa Rosa Greco of the Mezzanotte Family, and Herr Tobias Diederich of the Wolke Family …"

As the marriage ceremony went on, Rosa felt more and more lost. She didn't want this. She didn't want this man. She didn't want to get married.

_There's nothing I can do about it now,_ she thought hopelessly. _Nothing._

"If there is anyone who wishes to object to this marriage, speak now, or forever hold your peace…"

A pause of silence. Rosa wished more than anything someone would stand up and yell out "I object!" For a split second, she thought Saul might do it for her. But Saul didn't, and couldn't, save her. It was obvious. Any man or woman who objected to this marriage would be shot on the spot. Rosa was trapped.

She shuddered in revulsion at the hands that were clamped over her own. She glanced at Tobias, who smirked at her.

_Ready to be mine?_ He mouthed.

Rosa looked away, tears of anger and hate burning in the back of her eyes. She refused to cry. Not in front of these people. Not after eight years of bottling up her emotions.

And she definitely refused to cry in front of Tobias. She refused to show any sign of weakness in front of this horrible man, who would make her weak and vulnerable to his whims. She didn't even want to think about what will happen on their 'honeymoon'.

_Somebody, please, anybody! Object! Please!_ Rosa screamed in her head.

Silence.

"Ladies and gentleman, I am proud to pronounce these two as husband and –,"

**BOOM!**

There was a sudden, earth-rattling explosion. Rosa felt her whole body jolt, her ankles wobbling even more now. There was thick, white smoke filling the room. Screams of anger, fear, and shock were echoing throughout the hall.

"What in the -?"

**CRASH!**

Another explosion, Rosa felt everything double from its shaking. During the tumult and confusion, she began to hear the sounds of gunshots, swords, and general sounds of battle coming from the hall. Yet she couldn't see anything.

Yanking her hands away from the pale, clammy ones of Tobias, Rosa stumbled blindly around the altar. Her first thought was _Thank god, the marriage has been halted! Thank god!_ Followed quickly by _What the hell just happened?_ And then a panicked _Where's Saul?_

From all the screams around her, Rosa heard one very clearly. It was her father, Padre, and he roared out above all the other sounds. His furious, ungodly angry yell made Rosa's very bones shake.

"VONGOLA!"

It was the Vongola. They had attacked when all the strongest Mezzanotte Mafioso were together.

So the Vongola were the ones to attack first after all.

Rosa felt somebody crash right into her. "Get off of me!" She snapped, coughing slightly when the smoke invaded her lungs, and struggled to get the heavy and seemingly unconscious man off of her.

She froze when she felt something sticky and wet on her hands. She brought her shaking hand slowly up to her face.

Blood.

Rosa screamed and shoved the man off of her. There was blood all over her dress, staining the pure white with crimson. That man wasn't unconscious, he was _dead_.

Still screaming, Rosa stumbled backwards and tripped on her dress, falling backwards. She scrambled back until she hit the wall. She could practically _smell_ the blood – rusty, salty, wet – and it was making her head spin. She thought she really might throw up.

Suddenly, there was a whizzing sound through the air, and a knife embedded itself into the plaster of the wall right beside Rosa's head. It went so close it actually sliced at her cheek. Rosa felt the thin line of blood – her blood – trickle down her cheek.

A figure, obscured through the smoke, sauntered towards her. Rosa shivered and cowered against the wall.

"Ushishishishi…what's this? A little principessa?" The voice belonged to a man – whom Rosa was surprised to realize sounded only a little bit older than herself. The assassin knelt down in front of Rosa.

The assassin's arm reached out to wrench the knife out from the wall. He teasingly slid the blade across Rosa's cheek, and she shivered in fear. "Or maybe…a Contessa? Ushishishishi…"

To Rosa's extreme relief, the man put away the knife. But seconds later, she screamed when she felt the ground disappear from underneath her.

"W-what are you – put me down! Right now! Put me down!"

The assassin just gave another one of his strange laughs as he slung Rosa over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes. Not only was Rosa terrified, she was also furious and embarrassed. This was the first time anyone had ever treated her so … undignified!

"Put – me – down!" She screeched, kicking and pounding her fists on the assassin's stomach and back.

"Ushishishishi, your hits are really weak. Are you sure you're the daughter of the Mezzanotte Family's leader?"

"Shut up!" Rosa raised her voice. "HELP! PADRE! SAUL!"

She doubted they could hear her through all the confusion and turmoil. Still, she couldn't help but scream anyway.

"PADRE! SAUL! _SAUL!_"

Rosa heard the sound of rubble rolling on the ground. The Vongola assassins must have blasted open a hole in the wedding hall to enter. The assassin who was carrying her hopped through it easily.

"_SAUL!_" Rosa wailed desperately.

But no one came for her.

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The smoke finally began clearing out almost twenty feet outside of the headquarters. Rosa coughed the last of it out of her lungs, tears once again threatening to fall.

"Ushishishi, liked the smoke? It's a new invention, a larger version of a smoke bomb. Did rather well, it will take a long time for it to clear off …"

Rosa shivered at the smooth, velvety voice of her captor. "W-where are you taking me?" She demanded, trying to be brave and fearless. She thought of Padre, how strong he was, or the unbeatable Saul. She thought of her mother, Andromeda, and tried to come across as confident and strong.

Her voice came out as a terrified squeak, and it lost much of her usual bravado and haughtiness.

"Ushishishishi, back to Varia Headquarters for now, Contessa. Then we'll take a little visit to the Vongola Nono."

A kidnap, then. Or maybe she was being taken hostage. Rosa went silent for a while as she contemplated how far Padre would go to bring her back. With a strange feeling in her heart – sadness, she came to realize – she doubted he would care.

They were trekking through a forest for a long while before they came to a small clearing. The assassin dumped Rosa rather roughly onto the grass. Rosa scrabbled backwards until her back hit the surface of a very large rock.

Now that the smoke was gone, Rosa could see her captor clearly. He had skin as pale as her own, and he too had blonde hair, although it wasn't quite the golden-honey tone Rosa's had. His hair looked like it was in the middle of being grown out, a few locks upturned and fluffed out. Strangely enough, a tiara-like crown was glittering on his head. Even more strangely, his hair fell past his eyes, which made Rosa clueless as to what color his eyes were.

"Huh, so you are the Contessa Rosa Greco?" The assassin – who looked younger than Rosa thought, maybe only a year or so older – looked her up and down, before smiling and revealing very white, straight teeth. "Ushishishishi, you're prettier than I thought. So the rumours were true – you do look like your mother."

Rosa didn't know whether to feel terrified or flattered. What if this assassin liked her looks so much … he _did things_ to her against her will? She would have escaped marriage from Tobias and end up in the exact same situation with another man! Although this one looked decidedly better than Tobias, but still …

"W-who are you?" She managed to croak out.

The assassin smiled even wider. "Prince Belphegor. But everyone calls me Bel."

Prince? This assassin was a prince?

Rosa narrowed her eyes. "Liar. If you're a prince, how come you're an assassin?"

The prince smirked and shrugged his shoulders nonchalantly. "I killed my family."

Rosa shivered and cowered away from the obviously-insane man.

There was a rustle, and a person stepped out from the trees. This man looked older, with long silvery-white hair (that Rosa couldn't help but admire), and a sword blade strapped to his wrist. "VOOOOOOOOIII!" He yelled, so loud Rosa cringed. "IS THIS THE CONTESSA, BEL?"

"Ushishishishi, maybe …" Bel said lazily. The swordsman's eyebrow twitched.

"DON'T FUCK WITH ME, BRAT! IS SHE THE CONTESSA OR NOT?"

"Look at her and figure it out yourself."

With a growl and several low oaths under his breath, the swordsman stomped towards Rosa and glared down at her. Rosa peeked back meekly, completely terrified. Dealing with a man around her age was a lot easier than dealing with a man who clearly looked capable of killing her without a second thought.

After a moment, the swordsman nodded and turned to Bel. "Yeah, she's that woman's daughter, all right."

"Of course," Bel smirked. "I wouldn't take the wrong Contessa – I'm a prince, after all."

The swordsman rolled his eyes. "Whatever, fucking brat," He grumbled to himself.

Leaves rustled, and more assassins appeared in the clearing. Rosa thought she really might cry now. Surprisingly, none of them looked that menacing – well except for the man with the six umbrellas strapped to his back. One looked like a flamboyant gay man, while the other looked like a hooded baby.

"Is this Andromeda's daughter?" The flamboyant gay squealed, wriggling in delight and clapping his hands together. "Oh, she's so beautiful! Just like her mother! If only she smiled, then she would be like an angel!"

Rosa scowled even deeper. "Why should I smile? I've just been kidnapped by Vongola assassins!"

The swordsman snorted. "Voooii, looks like she's much more feisty compared to that woman."

"STOP COMPARING ME TO MY MOTHER!" Rosa screamed.

"As bratty as Bel, too," he added.

"Ushishishishi, I'm not bratty," Bel said, sounding both amused and indignant.

"Yeah, whatever. Just get that brat and let's go before boss gets pissed."

Bel made to pick Rosa up again, but Rosa – with a sudden bout of temporary insanity – slapped his hand away. "Go away, I'll walk myself!"

Bel's smile faltered slightly. "Did you just refuse the prince?"

Rosa struggled to her feet and attempted to make herself as dignified as possible – despite her tangled hair, the veil hanging askew, and her torn, bloody dress. "Yes, I did," she said, lifting her chin.

Knives appeared in Bel's hand. "Ushishishi, listen here, Contessa …"

"Now, now, Bel, don't scare her!" The gay man cried. "Oh, ignore him, honey, he's always like that. It sounds like he doesn't call you peasant, though, maybe because you're practically royalty as well? Hmmm …"

"VOOOOOOOOOIII! STOP CHATTING AND LET'S GO!"

With a glare in Rosa's direction (she assumed), Bel stalked off after the swordsman, the umbrella-man following close behind. The baby took one look at Rosa before suddenly floating up into the air and levitating after.

"So your name is Rosa, right, dear? How precious, a rose! It fits you so perfectly!" The gay man squealed. "My name is Lussuria, but you can call me Luss-nee, okay?"

Rosa nodded mutely, stumbling after Lussuria as they traipsed through the forest. "R-right…"

"VOOOOIII, CONTESSA-BRAT!" The swordsman roared from the front of the line. "GET UP HERE WHERE I CAN KEEP AN EYE ON YOU!"

Rosa flinched. Lussuria leaned towards her and whispered, "Don't worry, honey. Squalo may be loud and noisy, but he won't hurt you." Rosa had the feeling he winked at her, despite his eyes being hidden behind sunglasses.

Rosa nodded and gave him a shaky smile – he was the second person to ever be nice to her, after Saul – and she hurried up to the front, beside the silver-haired swordsman called Squalo.

"Huh, what's wrong with you, brat?" Squalo snapped at her.

"W-what?" Rosa stammered in confusion.

"Why are you willingly following us! I was expecting you to act like a huge whiny brat."

Rosa hesitated, not quite sure herself. "I guess …" She whispered nervously. "I guess I just don't want to go back home right now."

Squalo snorted but asked no other questions, something Rosa felt rather grateful for. There was silence for a long time.

After about an hour or so, Rosa's feet began to hurt. She was still wearing high heels, and it was much more different walking in a forest rather than a hallway in the headquarters. She tripped and stumbled a lot.

"Voi, will you watch your feet?" Squalo snapped after Rosa almost fell for the eighteenth time.

"Shut up!" Rosa snapped, flushing in embarrassment. "I can't walk well in these heels! And my feet hurt!" She turned behind her to see Bel close by. She took a deep breath and said, "You, Bel. Carry me."

Bel grinned. "No."

"What?"

"Ushishishishi, you heard me, Contessa. I refuse." He tilted his head to one side, his smirk widening. "Maybe if you say 'please', I'll reconsider it."

Rosa scowled. "Never," She spat out, before turning around with a huff.

Rosa began to regret her decision thirty minutes later. Her feet were aching, and she was certain there were blisters on her toes. She's never experienced something like this before.

"Bel!" She screamed in furious embarrassment. Bel smiled mockingly. "Yes, Contessa?"

"Carry me –" Rosa screwed up her face, before choking out "—please."

"Hmmm … you DID say please …" Bel smirked. "No."

Rosa turned red with anger, and balled her hands into fists.

Then she stopped walking.

The other assassins all stopped as well. "Voooii, woman, get a fucking move on!" Squalo snapped.

"No." Rosa said huffily, crossing her arms.

"VOOOOOOOOOOOOIIII!"

Rosa sat down on a broken tree stump. "I am _not_ moving," she said sniffily. "Somebody will either carry me or we can just stand here."

The assassins all looked at her (or in Squalo's case, glared).

Then Squalo turned back and began to walk.

"W-wha … hey! HEY!" Rosa shrieked. That wasn't what she expected at all.

"Uh, Squalo …" The umbrella-man said uncertainly.

"Just keep walking," Squalo grunted.

"What? S-so you're just going to let me go?" Rosa spluttered.

When Squalo spoke, there was an evident trace of amusement in his voice. "What? So you're going back home?"

Rosa stood up indignantly and spun around. She had no idea where she was. For all she knew, they could be miles away from the headquarters. She didn't even know where the nearest town was.

"Hey! HEY!" Rosa yelled at the rapidly disappearing assassins. They all ignored her.

With a scream of annoyance, Rosa ripped off her high heels and flung them somewhere into the bushes, before running after them.

* * *

**Otaku-chama: Okay, this is the first chappie of my Bel/OC fic : ) Yeah I know it seemed very OC-central in the beginning, but that's because I have to provide a backstory for Rosa's family. And yes, Rosa seems like an annoying, pampered princess and a spoiled brat, and that's because she is one. She gets better though, because Rosa at least knows humility and when to keep her mouth shut and her temper in check.**

**And yes, there will most likely be a love triangle between Saul, Rosa, and Bel : ) If you want to know what Saul looks like, he has brown hair and eyes. Other than that, he's up to your fantasies.**


	2. Chapter 2

***Rosa Among Thorns***

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**Disclaimer: **I do not own KHR or Akira Amano. I do own all OCs, this storyline, and dialogue. And stuff. Viewer discretion is advised, I guess? (/o_o)/

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**- Chapter 2 -**

**Spoiled Brats**

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_**Perseverance is the hard work you do after getting tired of doing the hard work you already did.**_

_**- Newt Gingrich**_

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When Rosa had finally reached the Varia Headquarters, her feet were muddy and covered in blisters and small cuts made by sharp rocks and broken branches. She grimaced at the overwhelmingly disgusting feeling of dirt underneath her toenails.

Never in her life. EVER, has she been forced into doing something so terribly … peasant-like and undignified.

Then again, she's never been kidnapped by the enemy's assassination squad, so it seemed like today was a day to try new things.

"Ushishishi." Rosa's head snapped up to see Bel, grinning at her evilly. "It seems like the Contessa has had a hard day's walk."

Rosa scowled at him with as much hate as she could muster. If it was anyone else in the castle, they would shrink back and murmur apologies for angering her.

Bel just did another creepy laugh of his and continued walking.

A not-so-gentle thump on her back made her utter a rather unprofessional, girlish squeak and look back. Squalo was there.

"Vooooii! Get a move on, brat. I don't have all day."

Rosa was tempted to just stay there. Now that they had finally stopped walking, the pain of her blistered feet were coming back at full force. However, another sharp jab made her force her legs forward.

All those times the Mezzanotte Family had brought in prisoners in the same position as she was in, and Rosa just scorned them. How ironic that she was now a prisoner and being treated like dirt. She had a feeling they wouldn't think twice about actually hurting her - strangely enough, they seemed to talk about her deceased mother with what might have been … respect?

She didn't know how or why they knew her, but perhaps the reason why she was still unharmed (minus two aching feet) was because of their respect for the mysterious Andromeda.

The doors ominously opened with the help of two forgettable guards dressed in black. Rosa slowly treaded into the creepy, dark mansion, her heart thudding erratically in her chest. The full danger of her surroundings was starting to creep in.

"Muu, keep walking," the baby-like assassin snapped, floating past her head thanks to the help of a strange glowing ring above him. Rosa stared, unable to hide her curiosity. It was a _baby_.

"Mammon isn't a baby, foolish Contessa," Bel's voice interrupted her thoughts. "He's an Arcobaleno. Don't tell me you don't know who the Arcobaleno are."

Rosa's cheeks flushed red. "O-of course I do!" In truth, she knew about as much of the mafia as a common peasant. She was a sheltered little swan, whether her father was the head of the second most powerful mafia family in the world or not, and she knew nothing of the mafia world, nor did she care up until now.

The only reason she even KNEW of the Vongola was because the entire Mezzanotte Family never stopped bitching about them wherever she went.

The Family. Saul.

A dull heartache swept through her and covered up her previous fear and anxiety. Was Saul alright? Did the assassins hurt him? Was he worried about her? Was he trying to find her?

"Keep _walking_!" Squalo snarled impatiently from behind her. Rosa frowned at him and made her feet drag as slow as possible on the cold marble floor. At least if offered her relief to her blistering toes.

"Ushishishi, I think the Contessa needs a little _persuasion_." Knives appeared in Bel's hands, the same kind of twisted, yet strangely beautiful dagger that had cut Rosa's cheek.

She lightly tapped the wound. The blood had dried up, but she still couldn't believe it. Nobody had ever attacked our hurt her before. The wound was shallow, but it still hurt.

After a series of twisting and confusing hallways, they finally reached a door. Squalo knocked on the door only once - a sort of irritable punch, if anything - and immediately opened it without waiting for an answer.

"Voooii, boss! We attacked those bastards and found the Conte-"

Squalo suddenly ducked as a bottle of some sort or liquid came crashing his way. It smashed against the door frame. Glass fell to the ground dangerously close to Rosa's feet. She backed away hurriedly, wrinkling her nose as the smell of alcohol wafted up.

"Fucking trash, you should've knocked first before coming in."

"VOOOOOOOIII, YOU BASTARD! I _DID_ KNOCK!"

"Stop wasting my time, you trash shark, and bring in the goddamn prisoner."

Growling and muttering profanities under his breath, Squalo grabbed Rosa's arm and yanked her along, practically dragging her into the dark room.

Rosa protested and struggled against his strong grip. "Let _go_ of me, you peasant! I can walk _myself_!"

"Great, we have another Bel in the house," Squalo said in retort, pushing her unceremoniously forwards. She stumbled, caught herself, and stood upright, before immediately reeling back in fright.

The only other person besides the Varia assassins behind her was a man in his late 20s, slouching in a tall, throne-like chair. His hair was messy, jet-black, and fell into his eyes slightly. However, they did not completely hide his terrifying red eyes.

This was definitely Xanxus, the leader of the Varia and supposed son of the Vongola Nono. Horrifying in both rumours and in person.

"Is this her?" He demanded, looking at Rosa. It was a dark, scrutinizing stare, and Rosa felt an overwhelming aura overpower her, giving her the feeling that she was choking. This man was pure evil. Terror began to overcome all her senses, as she gulped for air.

"Um, boss?" She heard Lussuria say timidly from behind her. "If it's possible - you're scaring the poor Contessa. She looks as if she might faint."

Xanxus grunted in response, but looked away. The aura soon left her, although it did not disappear entirely. Rosa found she could breathe again, and her legs stopped shaking.

"You, Contessa-whatever. Your mother is Andromeda?" When he addressed her directly, she flinched, but quickly tried to hide it. She refused to show her fear in front of anybody.

Raising her head, she forced her voice to go as strong as possible when she said, "Yes."

"Hn. You actually did something right for once, trash shark."

"VOOOOIII! I ALWAYS DO _EVERYTHING_ RIGHT! HOW ELSE DO YOU FUCKING LIVE, YOU BASTARD?!"

"Hey! Don't talk to the boss like that!"

"SHUT UP, LEVI!"

"It's true, I suppose. Squ-chan does all the paperwork for bossu-kun, doesn't he?"

"Ushishishishi, so Squalo is boss' bitch?"

"BEL, I WILL FUCKING KILL YOU!"

"Just try it, shark-commander."

Chaos began to erupt behind Rosa, but she didn't dare turn around to watch. It baffled her how such strong, fearsome assassins could end up fighting so childishly.

A sudden explosion brought them all to attention. Rosa didn't see the damage, but she could smell the smoke. And she could also see the tiny gleam of the gun that Xanxus had taken out.

"If you trash want to fight, do it away from my face. Stop bothering me, just get the fucking paperwork done and leave. _**Do I make myself clear, you scum?**_**"**

"Yes, boss," the assassins chorused behind her.

"Good. Now go away."

"Boss, what should we do with the Contessa?"

"None of my business, trash. GO AWAY."

A hand grabbed her arm again, and Rosa found herself being dragged out of the room. She saw a charred and blackened hole in the wall (still slightly smoking) and a faint glimpse of Xanxus pouring himself a glass of wine, before the door was slammed in her face and she was being pushed down the hallway.

"Stop _pushing_ me, you filthy pig!" She snapped at Squalo, her bratty personality bubbling back up now that Xanxus was out of sight. "I can walk _myself_!"

"And be a fucking turtle while you're at it. Now MOVE, brat."

She swatted away his pushing hand and began to walk, wincing slightly with each step. She noticed Bel looking at her bruised, aching feet, but he suddenly looked away.

"Voooii! So, are we taking the brat to a dungeon or what?"

Rosa's stomach churned. A _dungeon?_ HER? The Contessa of the Mezzanotte Family? She imagined sitting on a cold stone floor, with rats and cockroaches running about her feet, and she felt the urge to throw up.

Thankfully, Lussuria immediately objected. "Oh, god, NO! Squ-chan, how can you even THINK that? She's a CONTESSA!"

"And is that supposed to fucking _mean_ anything?"

"We can't have her sleep in a DUNGEON! Give her a nice, small, decent room! That should be good enough! A Contessa must sleep in a bed!"

Rosa thanked her stars for the outrageous assassin. She hated them all simply for bearing the name Vongola, but perhaps she hated Lussuria less than the others. He was definitely becoming her favourite amongst the Varia, and honestly she didn't have much of a decision either.

"Che, FINE, Lussuria, keep your freaking _pants_ on. We'll give the spoiled brat a freaking room." Squalo steered Rosa down a hallway, complaining all the while. "Voooii, who gives a crap where she sleeps anyway?"

"But she's a Contessa!"

"That doesn't mean SHIT! She's our prisoner, a HOSTAGE. She's going to be working for us and being useful, not acting like a little princess coming to this shithole as a guest!"

"Work?" Rosa repeated in disgust. "I'll have to _work?_"

"What else are you going to do around here? Paint? Read? Write poetry?"

"But you can't make me _work!_" Rosa whined, shuddering at the thought of holding a broom. "That's _peasant_ work!"

"And that peasant work is what YOU'LL be doing whether you like it or not, so suck it up, brat!" Squalo looked around. "Where the hell is Mammon?"

"Ushishishi, probably going to count his money," Bel snickered. "Will he notice if I stole a few coins?"

"Bel-chan, I think Mammon will notice if you steal so much as a penny." Lussuria sighed dramatically. "Oh, that stingy little Arcobaleno …"

A servant appeared, dressed in all black as usual. "Levi, sir! Your troops have assembled!"

"I'll be right there," Levi said, before turning back importantly to the other assassins. "Sorry, but I have a war meeting scheduled. Here are the keys." He reached into his pocket and pulled out a thick iron ring that contained several dozen little keys. He handed them to Squalo, who's eye started twitching.

"VOOOOIII, LEVI! WHAT THE FUCK?! WHICH ONE IS WHICH?!"

"I've got to run!" Levi dashed off, ignoring Squalo's irritated "VOOOOOOOOOOOOOOIIIIIIIIIIII!" that came after him.

"Oh my, how _does_ Levi remember each key?" Lussuria said in wonder, examining the ring. "There has got to be at least sixty on here."

"DAMMIT! How the hell will I know which one is which? It'll take all freaking day just to find the right key!"

They bickered about it until they stopped in front of a door. Squalo and Lussuria instantly started arguing over the keys, trying random ones and tossing them away if they didn't fit. Bel watched contentedly from the sidelines.

"You aren't making much of an effort to escape, Contessa," Bel said smoothly. "I'm a bit disappointed. I was hoping you'd try to run away so I could stab you in the back. Oh, how much fun that would be …"

Rosa grimaced at the sick-minded boy and edged further away from him. "I REFUSE to do menial household chores," she said stubbornly.

"Ushishishi, you 'refuse'?" Bel just laughed at that, making Rosa hate his bright-white grin more and more. "You think you can just refuse anything? You forget, Contessa, you are in _our_ house and therefore will follow _our_ rules. You're even lucky to have a room."

Rosa raised her chin defiantly and snapped at him, "It is my _right_ to have a proper place to sleep!"

Before she could even take a step back, one of those twisted daggers was in Bel's hand and pressed dangerously close to her neck. "Silly, naïve Contessa. Don't you understand? You _have_ no rights here. You only have _privileges_. It's a PRIVELEGE that we're giving you a room, and it's a PRIVELEGE that we're keeping you alive to do work while we negotiate with the Mezzanotte."

When he saw the shocked and incredulous look on her face, Bel grinned even wider. "We can easily give you a spot in the cellar to sleep on, or we can cut off a leg or two just for fun. After all, the Mezzanotte don't need you in one piece, do they?"

Rosa shivered at the absolute venom that dripped from his voice. She forgot; he may be only a bit older than her, but he too was a cold-blooded killer. And from what she could tell, this Prince Belphegor guy liked to torture.

"FOUND IT!" came Squalo's triumphant yell, quickly followed by the sound of a lock clicking and a door being pushed open. "GET INSIDE, YOU BRAT!"

Rosa scowled at the loudmouthed assassin and stomped inside. She wrinkled her nose at the shabbiness of the tiny room. The bed frame was made of slightly rusted metal and squeaked, the mattress was thin and lumpy, and there was only a raggedy old blanket and pillow. A dusty, full-length mirror leant against the wall, and a shabby vanity dresser was shoved to a side.

"You expect me to sleep HERE?" She demanded in disgust.

"Be GRATEFUL you're sleeping here, you brat!" Squalo snarled. "What, were you expecting a five-star suite?"

Rosa flushed red as she realized that was exactly what she was expecting? She was a prisoner, why would they give her a luxury bedroom?

"Don't you worry, Contessa-chan, there's a bathroom over there," Lussuria said brightly, ignoring Squalo as he pointed to a door. "Now, get a good night's sleep, alright? You have a biiiig day tomorrow!"

Squalo grumbled as the flamboyant man skipped away. He gave a good hard pull and yanked a key out of the ring. Tossing it to Bel, he said, "Lock it up, brat. I've had it for today."

Bel smirked at Rosa. "Have a good night's sleep, Contessa," he said in a mockingly sweet voice.

Rosa scowled at him, hating every fibre of his being.

Suddenly, Bel turned serious. He looked down at her feet. "Do they hurt?"

Rosa was thrown off, and couldn't think of any sort of snappy retort for that. Was he showing concern for her feet? Why would he?

She glanced down at the bright red blisters on her pale-skinned feet. Confusion from his sudden concern for her wellbeing made her vulnerable, like all kindness did. "… Yes, they do …"

There was a slight silence as Rosa glanced at the man.

The Cheshire-cat smile appeared once more on his face. "Good."

Then he shut the door and locked it, leaving a flabbergasted and extremely furious Rosa standing there like a fool.

* * *

**Otaku-chama: Hahaha! Oh, Rosa, why did you even think Bel would care?**

**Anyway, sorry for like never updating this. I'm back and stuff!**

**Oh, by the way, I have created a forum called English Class: Get Your KHR Stories Reviewed! If you have a KHR story written, send it to me and my friend and I will read whatever you have and give you an honest review of the characters and storyline and everything. Please send them to me! ****J Anyway, peace out.**


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